The World's Most Amazing Hotel Penthouses

It’s not enough for penthouses to be luxurious anymore. These days, travelers crave personality. They also want bragging rights that their suite was the biggest/tallest/weirdest possible. And since the definition of luxury is changing too, penthouses don’t always need glitz to impress. Here are some of our favorite top-floor suites around the globe.

The penthouse at The Mark Hotel in New York City

America’s largest penthouse is also the most expensive hotel room in the world. For $75,000 per night, The Mark will give you 12,000 square feet of sumptuous Jacques Grange furniture, Boffi custom kitchen, four fireplaces, six bathrooms, and a 2,500-square-foot rooftop terrace with a bird’s-eye view of Central Park. Oh, there’s free wifi, phone calls, and newspapers, too.

Courtesy SLS South Beach

The Tower Penthouse at SLS South Beach in Miami

When he’s not crooning, Lenny Kravitz apparently spends time decorating; he and Philippe Starck collaborated on the 1,044-square-foot Tower Penthouse at the SLS South Beach. It’s a rocker spin on Old Hollywood, from checkerboard floors to the faux-python armchair, disco-ball-like chandelier, and art-jammed walls. A long sofa makes the 550-square-foot beachfront terrace an irresistible lounging spot. From about $4,500/night; serenade by Kravitz not included.

Courtesy Atlantis

The Royal Bridge Suite at Atlantis,The Palm in Dubai

The Karadashians and the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills have stayed here. But don’t let that scare you from this Sultan’s palace in the sky, 22 stories above the streets of Dubai. Ornately classical Arabic motifs, riotous op-art colors, and ultra-luxe materials—that’s 22-carat gold all over the bathroom—make this 10,000-square-foot playground a nearly hallucinatory experience. You’ll also get your own team of butlers and chefs and a turquoise-and-gold dining room that seats 16.

Courtesy The St. Regis

The Bentley Suite at the St. Regis in New York City

Call it the Rolls-Royce of penthouses. After enlisting Dior and Tiffany, St. Regis tapped Bentley Motors to create one of its Designer Suites. The result is both over-the-top-Manhattan indulgent and veddy Britishly understated: Think cream and neutral tones, luscious wood finishes, but with auto-inspired touches like a Bentley dashboard-inspired accent table and an insane perforated diamond leather wall stitched with one of Bentley’s 42 custom leathers. The 1,700-square-foot suite will run you $10,500/night.

Courtesy Crown Towers Melbourne

Chairman’s Villa at Crown Towers in Melbourne

Don’t like working out with other hotel guests? You’ll get a private gym inside the gargantuan Chairman’s Villa suite at the Crown Towers Melbourne, recently renovated to the tune of $800,000. You’ll also get a cardio workout just walking through the immense entry corridor, a dramatic “gallery space” with its own furniture. This 11,700-square-foot colossus will run you about $20,000 per night.

Courtesy The Ludlow

Ludlow Penthouse at The Ludlow Hotel in New York City

The hotel-clogged Lower East Side finally has a penthouse that feels real. With its handmade Moroccan chandeliers, bronze stools in the shape of a human behind, and vintage vinyl collection, you’ll feel more like you’re renting the apartment of a neighborhood artist who hit it big, or maybe a well-traveled creative director at a downtown agency. If the full kitchen doesn’t make you want to move in, a 1,000-square-foot terrace with views of the new World Trade Center and Brooklyn Bridge will seal the deal.

Courtesy Mama Shelter

XL Mama at Mama Shelter in Paris

It’s only about 375 square feet, but this “XL” penthouse suite at Philippe Starck’s game-changing Paris property makes up for it in sheer chutzpah, from Chewbacca night lights to the graffiti’d living room to the private terrace with petrified-tree patio furniture. Mama Shelter’s in-your-face touches—like the “Mama Wants to Cream You Up” moisturizer in the bathroom—are a bonus.

Courtesy Ritz-Carlton Tokyo

The Ritz-Carlton Suite at the Ritz-Carlton in Tokyo

Sure, this 3,300-square-foot suite is sumptuous and modern. But it’s the chance to stay at the top of Tokyo's tallest building that makes the Ritz-Carlton Suite such a thrill. The views of Tokyo’s skyline, Mount Fuji, and the Imperial Palace Garden are almost worth the $25,000/night it’ll cost you to bed down in Frette linens here.

Photo by Adrien Gaut

Hollywood Hills View Apartment Suite at The Line Hotel in Los Angeles

L.A. has glitzier hotels with more opulent suites. But that’s the point of The Line, Koreatown’s new hub of nonchalant cool. The 900-square-foot Apartment Suite’s raw-concrete walls telegraph their own low-key luxe, and the widescreen Hollywood Hills views through floor-to-ceiling windows are priceless. At about $500/night, it’s actually one of LA’s better values.

Courtesy Hyatt Regency London

Saatchi Suite at the Hyatt Regency—The Churchill in London

Every hotel boasts its penthouses are works of art. But The Churchill’s not exaggerating. The Saatchi Suite’s an extension of London’s mighty Saatchi Gallery; young British artist Dominic Beattie created the museum-quality geometric abstracts, and groovy Vitra furniture ties it together. The show continues into the bathroom, where artist Celine Fitoussi created walls out of 2,000 soap bars. Leave your mark by scratching your initials in one of them—it’s tradition.